Archive for April, 2008
Thursday, April 10th, 2008
If you are looking to protect your PC but want to make sure that you are using a good product, why not take advantage of a free antivirus scan? There are two routes that you can take with this. Some companies allow a free scan of your computer but you will need to pay for the full antivirus product to remove any problems found. The second option is to download a free product that will also remove viruses.
The companies that allow a free antivirus scan include Bit Defender and Panda Security. Both of these companies have a good reputation in the field of creating computer security products. The reason they allow you to carry out a free scan is for you to get a feel for how simple their products are to use. The hope is that you then go on to buy the full product.
However, don’t rely on this free scan for your antivirus protection. Although it is better then doing nothing, carrying out a scan is only the first step in protecting your PC. You really want a full working product available to you as soon as any virus is encountered on your machine. It is also better to have a product that provides ‘real-time scanning’. With this feature, viruses are detected as soon as they try to get on your computer. This is better than waiting to find them on your next manual virus scan.
The second option is to use a totally free antivirus product. These can be downloaded for no charge and will both scan your computer and remove any problems that are found. AVG Antivirus is a program that falls into this category. It also provides some real time scanning ability.
Protecting your PC is a serious business. Using software that will provide a free antivirus scan is a great first step in protecting yourself. You will also need to decide what software to use to remove viruses and provide real time protection for your computer.
Posted in Computer and Internet Related | No Comments »
Thursday, April 10th, 2008
If you are looking for new antivirus software, you naturally want something that is going to be good at detecting and getting rid of parasite programs. But what many people fail to take into account is the system resources that your new piece of software is going to need. This could have a massive effect on how your PC operates. Here we look at how to make antivirus comparisons so that you can get a product that works efficiently.
Regular scanning for viruses is a necessary part of having any computer with Internet access. But some well-known pieces of software consume a large amount of your system resources to carry this out. In practice what this means is that your whole computer will slow down. Instead of flying through computations and opening programs quickly, it will feel like it’s taking ages.
Some of the best-known antivirus software are notorious for this. One such example is Norton Antivirus and in particular the Internet security suite. That is not to say that the software is bad or doesn’t do its job. Indeed, it works well. But it should be working quietly in the background, not affecting your whole system.
So how can you make sure that you get an efficient piece of antivirus software? Make use of any shareware or 30 day trials that you can download from the Internet and use before parting with any cash. This will give you a good feel for how the software will perform. This is preferable to buying the product from a shop, as often they will not accept a return once the packaging is open.
You can also look at the system requirements stated on the product. In my experience manufacturers often underestimate the system requirements. However if you are comparing 2 products and one needs 16MB of RAM and the other 256MB of RAM, you can guess which is going to suck up more of your resources.
You should also have a read of antivirus comparisons and reviews on the Internet and in the popular computing press.
Examples of products that have low resource requirements include AVG Antivirus from AVG Technologies (formerly Grisoft). This is available in a free version. NOD32 from Eset is another product that is famous for working very fast in the background and has a first class record of virus detection.
By considering the resource requirements, your computer will be protected but will still perform all its tasks quickly.
Posted in Computer and Internet Related | No Comments »
Thursday, April 10th, 2008
Imagine you are surfing from your personal desktop or laptop, no one looking over your shoulder or sitting nearby. You are all alone. Wrong! From your computer identity to your personal details, you are no longer anonymous on the internet. Here’s the company that you keep on the internet preventing you from surfing anonymously.
Hackers take advantage of your computer vulnerabilities to install small programs on your computer which record and relay your keyboard input. Then your information and passwords are used to hack into your bank accounts, credit cards and other financial institutions and cause you immense loss. In a similar manner, your lack of anonymous surfing leads to your professional data being stolen by hackers.
Advertisers find easy access to your computer and follow your internet activity to annoy you with popups or banner ads or both, even when you are not online. You also get bombarded with junk emails advertising products making your mailbox a spammers’ heaven. Without anonymous surfing, you will find advertisers accompanying you on the web at all time.
Hijackers use tracker cookies planted into your computer to stop you from anonymously surfing. These cookies follow your surfing patterns and then hijack your searches, with or without your knowledge. Hijackers don’t take your consent to install cookies and you end up on websites of hijackers’ choice. Do anonymous surfing to prevent hijackings.
Con Artists send you mails disguised as those from your bank and other financial companies. Some conmen even send mails announcing you as winners and asking for your financial details. Once you give financial details you find yourself conned out of your savings. You need to practice anonymous surfing to avoid such traps.
Mischief makers abound on the internet looking for browsers without anonymous surfing habits. They use unauthorized downloads to infect your computer with viruses, worms, trojans, spyware and other harmful programs. This can lead to loss of control over your own computer. You need to keep your computer safe from mischief makers and do only anonymous surfing.
Family and Work colleagues can easily trace your internet activity from the tracks you leave on your computer. The only way to prevent this is to do anonymous surfing.
With so many disrupters and scammers, not to mention people you know, following your internet browsing you can’t have any internet privacy. Safeguard your web privacy by using anonymous surfing software. Anonymous surfing software will ensure that not only is your browsing private, your data and information is also safe and secure.
Posted in Computer and Internet Related | No Comments »
Thursday, April 10th, 2008
As more and more people begin to use the internet, be it for communication, online banking, investment or shopping, the potential danger of hackers and malicious attackers increase. While some may simply be after information for phishing or identity resale purposes, others are more dangerous, looking for computers to use to launch attacks such as the infamous Denial of Service or other viruses or trojans at other unknowing targets. The list below contains some easy, cheap methods to make your computer secure. While there are other ways to do so, following the ten steps below will help you begin to protect your computer and your private information.
1. Backup your files and store them in a safe place away from your computer
2. Frequently patch and update your operating system, anti-virus, web browser and internet protection in order to prevent hackers from taking advantage of loopholes in software. You can update your windows operating system quickly at www.windowsupdate.microsoft.com by using the update wizard. Microsoft Office updates can also be found at www.officeupdate.microsoft.com
3. Install a proper firewall. With both a proper hardware and software firewall, most viruses, worms, trojans, malicious programs and adware are removed before they cause any major trouble or damage. It is important to update your firewall regularly as well.
4. Configure your browser and email settings for best security. Programs like ActiveX and Java are most commonly used by hackers to plant malicious programs into your system. Cookies can also be used to track your internet surfing in order to build an online profile of you. A good way to overcome these problems is to configure your internet browser to “high” security settings. At minimum, set your security settings to “high” for the internet and “medium” for your trusted sites zone.
5. Automatically update your antivirus software and internet security softwares. This allows you to receive the most current versions to prevent your computer security from being compromised.
6. Only run email attachments from people you know. And even then, only when you know what you are openning. Often, hackers can use a compromised email address to spam viruses or worms to infect other people. It is not enough to recognise the email address but rather you need to recognise the attachment.
7. Do not run unknown .exe programs. This is the most dangerous thing to do as they often contain trojan horse scripts waiting to infect other computers.
8. Disable hidden filename extensions. This allows you to identify and spot any unknown filenames or programs that may be running on your computer. The Windows default option hides filename extensions so you will have to disable this option.
9. Disconnect your computer from the internet and switch it off when not in use. This prevents a hacker from attacking your computer as it is not hooked up to a network.
10. Make a boot disk on a CD before your computer experiences a hostile breach of security. This allows you to recover the data and your system operations after a successful attack on your computer.
Posted in Computer and Internet Related | No Comments »
Thursday, April 10th, 2008
Where there are intelligent minds easing our lives with new ways of connecting people, there are also malicious minds wrecking our lives with the same media. It is essential to use the internet with precautions in place. The most important safety measure is the use of anonymous surfing software.
Anonymous surfing software is an application that keeps you safe while on the internet. It gives your web browsing anonymity, preventing tracking and other misuse of your presence on the internet. There are 5 advantages to using this software:
1. Privacy
Anonymous surfing software maintains your privacy. On the internet it gives you the freedom to surf freely without worry of anyone getting access to your computer and the data and information stored it. But what about your family, friends, or office? Your online activities are kept private, thereby eliminating the possibility of anyone knowing what you did online.
2. Safety
Anonymous surfing software keeps harmful programs from downloading on your computer, like key loggers which can be used to record your financial passwords, incurring financial losses for your. Similar programs can be used for your data passwords too leading to data loss and security breaches. Your financial data remains safe and protected.
3. Security
Internet is no longer a safe place. There is no way for you to know which website is downloading harmful programs in your computer. Anonymous surfing software takes care of this for you, preventing any unauthorized downloads on your computer. So you can surf without fear of spyware, adware, worms, etc. When you use anonymous surfing software, your web searches are no longer pharmed (redirected) to other websites who profit by tracking and hijacking your web surfing.
4. Encryption
Anonymous surfing software encrypts your internet connection and communication online. To do this it uses SSL technology and SSH tunneling. The data sent out from your computer and received to your computer is encrypted, making it safe from hackers and other internet watchers having harmful intent.
5. Anonymity
Anonymous surfing software will obtain anonymity for you on the internet. To do this, it utilizes anonymous proxy surfing methods which channel your surfing through other computers (servers). The logic is simple your web browser connects to a proxy server which in turn connects to the internet, masking your presence and your computer’s identity. This is useful for both personal and business reasons.
Posted in Computer and Internet Related | No Comments »
Thursday, April 10th, 2008
Every computer attached to the internet is open to attack from a virus, spyware, hoax emails and phishing. These attacks may damage or delete your important data, or install malicious software which may steal your passwords, credit card details or use your PC to attack other systems over the internet. According to Symantec, an unprotected, unpatched computer system is attacked within 20 minutes of connecting to the internet. The following 10 tips below will assist in protecting a Windows XP computer from such attacks, help to protect your important data, and save you the cost of a PC repair.
1. Security Updates
Always ensure that all critical security updates are installed on your computer. These are released by Microsoft each month and fix known security issues that have been discovered. In case of forgetfulness set the updates to automatically install by going to start >control panel>automatic updates.
2. Passwords
Always use a password; the longer the better. Make sure it is not something that someone could easily guess i.e. a child’s name. Use a mixture of numbers, uppercase and lowercase letters, and symbols. Do not write the password down, or let others know what it is.
3. Administrator Account
DO NOT use an account with administrator privileges for everyday use, as this could allow viruses and spyware the ability to self install on your PC. Always create a limited account for daily use. If you need to install anything you can login as administrator or use Run As (shift and right click the file) to install without logging off. It is also advisable to delete the ‘Guest’ account.
To create a limited account:
Start>Settings>Control Panel>User Accounts
Select Create a new account, give it a name, and select Limited as the account type.
4. Firewall
Microsoft Windows XP Service pack 2 provides you with a free personal firewall. Make sure that it is activated by going to Start>Settings>Control Panel>Windows Firewall.
Alternatively you can download ZoneAlarm, a free personal firewall for individual use.
If you have a broadband router with built in firewall, ensure that it is active. Details can be found in the manual supplied with your router. Only install one software, and one hardware firewall, or you may not be able to connect to the internet.
5.0 Antivirus software
To protect yourself from viruses, you will need to install an up-to-date anti-virus software package. There are many commercial packages available, offering complete protection, including firewall and spyware protection, and spam filtering for your email. These packages provided by suppliers such as Mcafee and Symantec will normally have a yearly subscription charge and provide updates for your software as new threats appear. For those on a tight budget there are a many free antivirus products available, such as Antivir Avast! and AVG.
As mentioned, updates are released for these packages frequently, so you will need to check the settings of your installed antivirus software to ensure that it is scheduled to automatically install new updates. It is also advisable to set a scheduled time for the software to check your files automatically.
6. Anti-spyware & Malware
Spyware and Malware are programs that once installed onto your PC will collect personal information, install other programs and take over your web browser. They will redirect you to other malicious web sites, pop up offensive or irritating advertisements, and also slow down your computer.
There are many anti-spyware packages available, including many that are free. Free anti-spyware packages include Microsoft Defender, though the most popular is Ad-aware, and Search & Destroy. Remember to install any updates to ensure full protection from the latest threats.
7. Update your Web Browser
Install Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 from Microsoft or Firefox from Mozilla.The latest browsers will provide increased security against phishing (Spoof websites that steal account details). The recent updates will also give you enhancements, such as tabbed browsing, live web feeds (RSS) and popup blocking.
8. Shared Files and Folders.
Check that your important files and folders are not shared. Click on ‘My Computer’, right click your ‘C: Drive’ and select ‘Properties’. Select the ‘Sharing Tab’ and select ‘Do not share this folder’. Click ‘OK’. If you need to share a folder or file with someone, remember to remove the share later.
9. Backing Up Your Files.
It is always better to prepare for the worst case scenario. A virus could infect your computer, or a component such as the hard disk may fail. Regularly backing up a recent copy of your important files, and storing them elsewhere could save you hours of work in an emergency. Start getting into the habit of routinely saving all your important files to either a CD, USB flash or external drive. Alternatively back up those files to an online data storage website. Take a look at www.humyo.com. It is free to use, has unlimited storage space, and is flexible enough to allow you to share files with friends, publish information, and access your data on a mobile phone.
10. User Awareness
The final and most important security tip is user awareness. All the extra protection installed will be useless if you install software that has Malware built in. Many file sharing software packages are guilty of this.
Do not open email attachments from someone you do not know, or with a suspicious subject. If you need to view them, save the attachment first and check it with your virus software. Do not pass on chain e-mails as these are considered spam.
If you have children, make sure that you can see which sites they visit, and make sure they are logged in with a limited account. Install content software similar to net nanny which will restrict malicious or adult web sites.
Posted in Computer and Internet Related | No Comments »